Method and apparatus for managing operations of a communication device

ABSTRACT

A system that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for example, a communication device having a controller to provision a matching network that controls one or more operational characteristics of one of a receiver portion and a transmitter portion of the communication device according to a profile describing one or more characteristics of a communication system from which the communication device operates. Additional embodiments are disclosed.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.12/577,178 filed Oct. 10, 2009, which is incorporated herein byreference in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The present disclosure relates generally to communication deviceoperations, and more specifically to a method and apparatus for managingoperations of a communication device.

BACKGROUND

The quality of wireless communications between wireless access pointssuch as Wireless Fidelity (WiFi) or cellular base stations and portablemobile devices such as cell phones and laptop computers can depend onmany factors. For example, an antenna's performance in a portable devicecan be impacted by its operating environment. Multiple use cases canexist for radio handsets, which include such conditions as the placementof the handset's antenna next to a user's head, or in the user's pocketor the covering of an antenna with a hand, which can significantlyimpair wireless device efficiency. Similarly, the quality of wirelesscommunications can be affected by network topology and location of themobile device.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a communication device;

FIG. 2 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a portion of a transceiverof the communication device of FIG. 1;

FIGS. 3-4 depict illustrative embodiments of a tunable matching networkof the transceiver of FIG. 2;

FIGS. 5-6 depict illustrative embodiments of a tunable reactive elementof the tunable matching network;

FIG. 7 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a test environment forconfiguring the communication device of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 depicts an exemplary method operating in portions of the testenvironment of FIG. 7;

FIGS. 9-12 depict illustrative embodiments of data sets before and afteran application of a smoothing function;

FIG. 13 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a look-up table utilizedby the communication device for controlling the matching network of thetransceiver of FIG. 2;

FIG. 14 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a communication systemfrom which the communication device of FIG. 1 can operate;

FIG. 15 depicts a method operating in portions of the communicationsystem of FIG. 14; and

FIG. 16 depicts an exemplary diagrammatic representation of a machine inthe form of a computer system within which a set of instructions, whenexecuted, may cause the machine to perform any one or more of themethodologies disclosed herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

One embodiment of the present disclosure entails a computer-readablestorage medium having computer instructions to establish a communicationsession with a communication system, identify the communication systemfrom the communication session, select a profile according to theidentified communication system, and provision one or more tuning statesof a matching network having a tunable reactance according toprovisioning information included in the profile, wherein the one ormore tuning states of the matching network affects one or moreperformance parameters of the communication device.

One embodiment of the present disclosure entails a matching networkhaving a tunable reactance circuit coupled to one of a transmitterportion and a receiver portion of a communication device. The tunablereactance circuit can affect one or more performance parameters of thecommunication device. The tunable reactance circuit can further beprovisioned by the communication device according to a profile thatdescribes communication characteristics of a communication system fromwhich the communication device operates.

One embodiment of the present disclosure entails a cellular base stationhaving a controller to transmit a request to a communication device toutilize a profile for provisioning a tunable reactance circuit thataffects one or more performance parameters of the communication device.

One embodiment of the present disclosure entails a communication devicehaving a controller to provision a matching network that controls one ormore operational characteristics of one of a receiver portion and atransmitter portion of the communication device according to a profiledescribing one or more characteristics of a communication system fromwhich the communication device operates.

One embodiment of the present disclosure entails a method to tune atunable reactance circuit in a communication device according to aprofile that controls operations of the communication device accordingto at least one of a transmit power level of a transmitter portion ofthe communication device and a receive signal strength of a receiverportion of the communication device.

FIG. 1 depicts an exemplary embodiment of a communication device 100.The communication device 100 can comprise a wireless transceiver 102(herein having independent transmit and receiver sections, a userinterface (UI) 104, a power supply 114, and a controller 106 formanaging operations thereof. The wireless transceiver 102 can utilizeshort-range or long-range wireless access technologies such asBluetooth, WiFi, Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications (DECT), orcellular communication technologies, just to mention a few. Cellulartechnologies can include, for example, CDMA-1X, WCDMA, UMTS/HSDPA,GSM/GPRS, TDMA/EDGE, EV/DO, WiMAX, and next generation cellular wirelesscommunication technologies as they arise.

The UI 104 can include a depressible or touch-sensitive keypad 108 witha navigation mechanism such as a roller ball, joystick, mouse, ornavigation disk for manipulating operations of the communication device100. The keypad 108 can be an integral part of a housing assembly of thecommunication device 100 or an independent device operably coupledthereto by a tethered wireline interface (such as a flex cable) or awireless interface supporting for example Bluetooth. The keypad 108 canrepresent a numeric dialing keypad commonly used by phones, and/or aQwerty keypad with alphanumeric keys. The UI 104 can further include adisplay 110 such as monochrome or color LCD (Liquid Crystal Display),OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) or other suitable display technologyfor conveying images to an end user of the communication device 100. Inan embodiment where the display 110 is a touch-sensitive display, aportion or all of the keypad 108 can be presented by way of the display.

The power supply 114 can utilize common power management technologies(such as replaceable batteries, supply regulation technologies, andcharging system technologies) for supplying energy to the components ofthe communication device 100 to facilitate portable applications. Thecontroller 106 can utilize computing technologies such as amicroprocessor and/or digital signal processor (DSP) with associatedstorage memory such a Flash, ROM, RAM, SRAM, DRAM or other liketechnologies.

FIG. 2 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a portion of the wirelesstransceiver 102 of the communication device 100 of FIG. 1. In GSMapplications, the transmit and receive portions of the transceiver 102can include common amplifiers 201, 203 coupled to a tunable matchingnetwork 202 and an impedance load 206 by way of a switch 204. The load206 in the present illustration can an antenna as shown in FIG. 1(herein antenna 206). A transmit signal in the form of a radio frequency(RF) signal (TX) can be directed to the amplifier 201 which amplifiesthe signal and directs the amplified signal to the antenna 206 by way ofthe tunable matching network 202 when switch 204 is enabled for atransmission session. The receive portion of the transceiver 102 canutilize a pre-amplifier 203 which amplifies signals received from theantenna 206 by way of the tunable matching network 202 when switch 204is enabled for a receive session. Other configurations of FIG. 2 arepossible for other types of cellular access technologies such as CDMA.These undisclosed configurations are contemplated by the presentdisclosure.

FIGS. 3-4 depict illustrative embodiments of the tunable matchingnetwork 202 of the transceiver 102 of FIG. 2. In one embodiment, thetunable matching network 202 can comprise a control circuit 302 and atunable reactive element 310. The control circuit 302 can comprise aDC-to-DC converter 304, one or more digital to analog converters (DACs)306 and one or more corresponding buffers 308 to amplify the voltagegenerated by each DAC. The amplified signal can be fed to one or moretunable reactive components 504, 506 and 508 such as shown in FIG. 5,which depicts a possible circuit configuration for the tunable reactiveelement 310. In this illustration, the tunable reactive element 310includes three tunable capacitors 504-508 and an inductor 502 with afixed inductance. Other circuit configurations are possible, and therebycontemplated by the present disclosure.

The tunable capacitors 504-508 can each utilize technology that enablestunability of the capacitance of said component. One embodiment of thetunable capacitors 504-508 can utilize voltage or current tunabledielectric materials such as a composition of barium strontium titanate(BST). An illustration of a BST composition is the Parascan® TunableCapacitor. In another embodiment, the tunable reactive element 310 canutilize semiconductor varactors. Other present or next generationmethods or material compositions that can support a means for a voltageor current tunable reactive element are contemplated by the presentdisclosure.

The DC-to-DC converter 304 can receive a power signal such as 3 Voltsfrom the power supply 114 of the communication device 100 in FIG. 1. TheDC-to-DC converter 304 can use common technology to amplify this powersignal to a higher range (e.g., 30 Volts) such as shown. The controller106 can supply digital signals to each of the DACs 306 by way of acontrol bus of “n” or more wires to individually control the capacitanceof tunable capacitors 504-508, thereby varying the collective reactanceof the tunable matching network 202. The control bus can be implementedwith a two-wire common serial communications technology such as a SerialPeripheral Interface (SPI) bus. With an SPI bus, the controller 106 cansubmit serialized digital signals to configure each DAC in FIG. 3 or theswitches of the tunable reactive element 404 of FIG. 4. The controlcircuit 302 of FIG. 3 can utilize common digital logic to implement theSPI bus and to direct digital signals supplied by the controller 106 tothe DACs.

In another embodiment, the tunable matching network 202 can comprise acontrol circuit 402 in the form of a decoder and a tunable reactiveelement 404 comprising switchable reactive elements such as shown inFIG. 6. In this embodiment, the controller 106 can supply the controlcircuit 402 signals via the SPI bus which can be decoded with commonBoolean or state machine logic to individually enable or disable theswitching elements 602. The switching elements 602 can be implementedwith semiconductor switches or micro-machined switches such as utilizedin micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS). By independently enabling anddisabling the reactive elements (capacitor or inductor) of FIG. 6 withthe switching elements 602, the collective reactance of the tunablereactive element 404 can be varied.

The tunability of the tunable matching networks 202, 204 provides thecontroller 106 a means to optimize performance parameters of thetransceiver 102 such as, for example, but not limited to, transmitterpower, transmitter efficiency, receiver sensitivity, power consumptionof the communication device, a specific absorption rate (SAR) of energyby a human body, frequency band performance parameters, and so on. Toachieve one or more desirable performance characteristics which adesigner can define, the communication device 100 can be placed in ananechoic chamber 706 such as depicted by FIG. 7. In this configuration,the designer can perform calibration measurements of performanceparameters of the communication device 100 such as Total Radiated Power(TRP), Total Isotropic Sensitivity (TIS) or Radiated Harmonicsmeasurements, receiver efficiency, transmit power efficiency, and powerconsumption, just to mention a few. For a multi-frequency bandcommunication device 100, the calibration measurements can be performedper band or per sub-band.

Additionally, the calibration measurements can be performed under anumber of use cases of the communication device 100 utilizing a phantombody that emulates the composition of a human body. For instance, acommunication device 100 having a housing assembly of a flip design, thecommunication device 100 can be placed next to an ear of the phantomwhen the flip is open to emulate a typical conversational use case. In ahands-free application such when a user utilizes a Bluetooth headset orwhen the communication device 100 is in standby mode, the communicationdevice 100 can be placed on a hip of the phantom with the flip closed.Calibration can be performed on other use cases such as antenna up, ordown, speakerphone feature “ON” with communication device 100 held witha phantom hand but away from the phantom head. Any number of use casescan be applied to each frequency band and sub-band if desirable.

As depicted in FIG. 7, a computer 702 can be communicatively coupled tothe communication device 100 located in the anechoic chamber by way of aBluetooth to USB adapter with coaxial connection. The computer 702 canalso be communicatively coupled to a communications system analyzer 704(which can place and receive active “phone calls” to a cellular handset)which is also connected to the anechoic chamber by way of coaxial cableconnection. The computer 702 can control the communications systemanalyzer 704 and the tunable matching network 202 of FIG. 2. Control ofthe communication device 100 can conform to a Bluetooth Serial PortProfile (SPP) which provides the computer 702 a means to send testcommands, control DAC settings, or switch settings by way of controlcircuits 302 or 402 of FIG. 3 or 4. Although not shown, the calibrationenvironment of FIG. 7 can include additional test equipment that canmeasure power consumption of the communication device 100, SAR,harmonics or other useful performance parameters. Accordingly, anymeasurable performance parameter of the communication device 100 iscontemplated by the present disclosure.

FIG. 8 depicts an exemplary method 800 operating in portions of the testenvironment of FIG. 7. Method 800 can begin with the computer 702directing the operations of the communication device 100 and theconfiguration of the tunable matching network 202 to perform actualmeasurements of one or more performance parameters (e.g., TX power, RXsensitivity via received signal strength indication or RSSI, powerconsumption, and so on) of the communication device 100. Suppose forinstance that tunable matching network 202 includes three DACs eachhaving thirty-two configurable output voltages ranging from 0 to 3 Voltsas shown in FIG. 3. Three DACs would provide 32,768 (32*32*32)combination of voltages which can be supplied to the three tunablecapacitors 504-508 of FIG. 5. Assume further that the transceiver 102supports 4 bands for world travel, and the designer of the communicationdevice 100 would like to test 3 use cases per band. Under theseconditions, the designer would have to perform 393,216 calibrationmeasurements for each performance parameter of interest, which couldlead to millions of measurements.

Step 802, however, can be adapted to perform a subset of the possibletuning states of the DACs 306. For example, the computer 702 can beadapted to perform calibration measurements for five tuning states ofeach DAC. Under these constraints, the calibration measurements can belimited to 125 (5*5*5) calibration measurements for each performanceparameter of interest. If one includes 4 bands and 3 use cases, then thetotal calibration measurements can amount to 1500 measurements, which isobviously substantially less than a full sweep of calibrationmeasurements.

For illustration purposes only, the tuning matching network 202 asdepicted in FIG. 3 will be assumed to have only two DACs, each capableof 20 tunable levels. It is further assumed that a subset of 5 tuningstates is used for step 802. With this in mind, FIG. 9 depicts a dataset of 25 calibration measurements of receive sensitivity data based onRSSI measurements. The graph of FIG. 9 illustrates 1 dB contour bands.As should be evident from FIG. 9, contour bands 902-914 are not smooth.The jagged bands occur for two reasons. First, the RSSI data points areinaccurate because the communication device 100 can only providenon-fractional RSSI data. Second, the missing tuning states create astep effect which creates additional jagged edges between contour bands.

In step 804, the computer 702 can be adapted to apply a commonmathematical fitting function g(v1, v2, . . . ) to model systemperformance for the portion of tuning states not included in the subsetof step 802. The fitting function can also reduce inaccuracies in theRSSI data. The fitting function can be a 3^(rd) or 4^(th) order functionthat utilizes a common regression algorithm to interpolate between theactual measurements derived from step 802. For illustration purposes,what follows is a sample 3^(rd) order fitting function:

c1+c2x+c3y+c4x ² +c5y ² +c6xy+c7xy ² +c8x ² y+c9x ³ +c10y ³

Constants c1-c10 can be adapted through an iterative process to performa third order fitting function. Other fitting functions are contemplatedby the present disclosure. FIG. 10 depicts the result of applying thefitting function to the RSSI data set of FIG. 9. As should be evidentfrom FIG. 10, the 1 dB contour bands 1002-1012 have been substantiallysmoothed to more accurately reflect the actual RSSI measurements and toestimate the RSSI measurements which would have been measured for thetuning states of the DACs 1 and 2 which were not included in the subsetof step 802.

FIG. 11 depicts an illustration of a data set for transmit powermeasurements performed with the subset of tuning states used in step802. The 1 dB contour bands 1102-1120 for this illustration are lessjagged than the contour bands 902-914 of FIG. 9 because the TX powermeasurement is derived from the network analyzer which can providefractional results to the computer 702. FIG. 12 depicts the data setresulting from the application of the above fitting function in step804. As should be evident in this illustration, the fitting functiongenerates smoother contour bands 1202-1220 when compared to the contourbands 1102-1120 of FIG. 11.

Once the data sets for each performance parameter (e.g., RX sensitivity,TX power, etc.) have been fitted in step 804 over the entire tuningstates of DACs 1 and 2, the computer 702 can be adapted with computersoftware to proceed to step 806 where it can present the designer of thecommunication device 100 options to define desired figures of merit(FOMs) which can be used to determine tuning states that provide optimalsolutions for the desired FOMs. An FOM can represent, for example, adesired power transmit efficiency (TX power over battery power drain).FOMs can also represent “keep out” areas where optimal performance maynot be desirable. FOMs can also mathematically combine performanceparameters (e.g., TX power+RX power).

Once the designer has defined one or more desirable performancecharacteristics of the communication device 100 in the form of FOMs, thecomputer 702 can be adapted in step 808 to find a range of tuning statesthat achieve the desired FOMs by sweeping with a common mathematicalmodel in fine increments to find global optimal performance with respectto the desired FOMs. The computer 702 can be adapted in step 810 topresent the user the range of tuning states that achieve the desiredFOMs on a per band and per use case basis. The user can select in step812 portions of the tuning states for storage in a look-up table whichcan be utilized by the communication device 100 during operation. FIG.13 depicts an illustration of a look-up table which can be indexed bythe controller 106 of the communication device 100 of FIG. 1 duringoperation according to band, and use case.

During normal operation by consumers, the communication device 100 candetect a number of possible use cases for the device. For instance, thecommunication device 100 can detect that the consumer has invoked a callor has answered a called based on the state of call processing softwareoperating in the communication device 100. The call processing softwareoperating in the communication device 100 can also detect which band orsub-band is being used for the active call. The communication device 100can further detect that a flip housing assembly has been opened with acommon electro-mechanical sensor.

The communication device 100 can also detect from the call processingsoftware that a Bluetooth headset feature, and a speakerphone featureare disabled while a communication session is taking place. Thecommunication device 100 can also detect with a commonelectro-mechanical sensor whether an antenna has been raised or is inthe closed position. The communication device 100 can also detect with aproximity sensor and/or an orientation sensor (e.g., an accelerometer)whether the device is near a body part of the user, and whether thedevice is in a horizontal or vertical position.

There are innumerable detectable use cases that are contemplated by thepresent disclosure. These detectable states in whole or in part canprovide the communication device 100 a means to predict a likelihood ofany number of use cases. Once a user case is detected, the communicationdevice 100 can index through the look-up table of FIG. 13 according tothe frequency band (or sub-band) and the use case to identify adesirable tuning state of the tunable matching network 202 of FIG. 2that causes the communication device 100 to operate in a desirablemanner contemplated by the designer of said communication device 100.

FIG. 14 depicts a hybrid communication system 1400 supporting WiFi,PSTN, and cellular communications, and Internet services from which thecommunication device 100 can operate. The communication system 1400 isillustrative and non-limiting. That is, other wired or wirelesscommunication techniques are contemplated by the present disclosure suchas Ethernet over power lines, Bluetooth, WiMAX, Software Defined Radio,and so on. FIG. 15 depicts a method 1500 which can be used by thecommunication device 100 in addition or in combination with theaforementioned embodiments described by method 800.

Method 1500 can begin with step 1502 in which a communication device 100establishes a communication session with the communication system 1400.The communication session can be a wireless communication sessionutilizing common wireless access technologies such a GSM, CDMA, UMTS,WiFi, Bluetooth, or combinations thereof. In one embodiment, thecommunication device 100 can identify in step 1504 the communicationsystem 100 from an identifier supplied thereby. The communicationidentifier can be a public land mobile network (PLMN) identifier asdefined by 3GPP standard, a service set identifier (SSID), CellIdentifier (CELL Id in the 3GPP standard) or another form ofidentification which can identify a communication element of thecommunication system 1400 such as a cellular base station or othercommon wireless access points such as a WiFi access point.

In step 1506, the communication device 100 can select a profileaccording to the identifier. The profile can represent a set ofinstructions, a look-up table, or combinations thereof for provisioningthe tunable matching network 202. The profile can among other thingsinclude time-of-day provisioning information, provisioning informationassociated with an operating location of the communication device,provisioning information for tuning a receiver portion of thecommunication device, or provisioning information for tuning atransmitter portion of the communication device.

Any one or combinations of the foregoing embodiments of provisioninginformation can direct the communication device 100 to provision thetunable matching network 202 to adapt performance parameters of thetransmitter portion and/or the receiver portion of the transceiver 102of FIG. 1 according to time-of-day considerations such as high and lownetwork traffic conditions; the operating location of the communicationdevice 100 such as metropolitan roaming, suburban roaming and so on; orspecific tuning instructions for the receiver portion and/or transmitterportion. These embodiments are non-limiting. Accordingly, other suitableprovisioning instructions are contemplated by the present disclosure.

The provisioning information included in the profile can be determinedby a network operator from uplink and/or downlink communicationcharacteristics of the communication system 1400. The performanceparameters of the communication device 100 can include withoutlimitation power consumption of the communication device 100, radiatedpower of the transmitter portion of the communication device, linearityof the transmitter portion, a receive sensitivity of the receiverportion of the communication device, or channel selectivity of thereceiver portion.

The provisioning information can be used to control an operatingefficiency of the transceiver 102, battery life, or other commondesirable performance metrics. The provisioning information can also beused to improve an operating characteristic of the receiver portion ofthe communication device 100 at the expense of an operatingcharacteristic of the transmitter portion of the communication device100 and vice-versa.

In another embodiment, the tunable matching network 202 can be used as atunable filter network for controlling an operation of the receiver ortransmitter portions. The provisioning information supplied in theprofile can be used for example to alter a filter that detunes thereceiver portion, which may have useful consequences as will bediscussed below.

Steps 1508-1512 present additional embodiments for utilizing a profile.For example, in one embodiment, the communication device 100 can receivea request from the communication element of the communication system1400 to utilize a particular profile, which it can select in step 1510.In one embodiment, the communication device 100 can receive the profile(a supplement to an existing profile, or a modification thereto) fromthe communication element in step 1512. Responsive to the embodiments ofsteps 1504-1512, the communication device 100 can provision the tunablematching network 202 in step 1514.

In another embodiment, the communication device 100 can be programmed todetermine a need to auto-tune without instructions from thecommunication system 1400 and/or independent of the communication system1400 from which the communication device operates. The communicationdevice 100 can make this determination in step 516. The auto-tunecondition can be determined from the profile which can identify receiveror transmitter operating characteristics that warrant an adjustment tothe performance parameters of the communication device 100 by way of anadaptation of tuning states of the tunable matching network 202. Forinstance, if the link margin for the receiver and transmitter is high,the communication device 100 can independently choose to auto provisionthe tunable matching network 202 to improve the power consumption of thecommunication device.

The adapted performance parameters of the communication device 100managed according to aspects of the profile described above can be usedby a communication element of the communication system 1400 to adapt instep 1520 communication services of a population of communicationdevices served thereby. For example, a communication element can offerincreased system capacity as a result of a number of communicationdevices 100 optimizing transmitter linearity to reduce in bandinterference, and thereby improve overall system capacity.

Generally speaking, different network operators (carriers) can deploytheir infrastructure (base stations and antenna towers and antennasystems) differently from each other, and correspondingly some networksmay be “uplink limited” and some “downlink limited”. This means that insome networks the link between the handset transmitter and the basestation receiver may have less total loss in it than the link betweenthe base station transmitter and handset receiver or vice-versa. In suchsituations the tunable matching network 202 in the handset could bealtered to accommodate such differences.

For instance, in the case where a network is downlink limited it wouldbe appropriate for the handset antenna tuner of the communication device100 to emphasize the improvement in the match to the antenna in thehandset's receive band at the expense of the match in the transmit band.This can be a way to improve overall performance or link margin to thatparticular network. Conversely if a network were uplink limited, then itcan be appropriate to improve the match in the handset's transmit bandat the expense of the receive band.

If this information is known, the tuner look-up tables referred to abovecan be expanded to include the input of network identity (PLMN forexample), with appropriately different tuner settings for differentcommunication networks. In addition, even within a network (PLMN) thelook-up table can be specific to individual Cell Site Identities, if thenetwork operator knows of a particular issue in certain locations withinhis network.

There is yet another aspect to consider when determining the settingsfor a tunable matching network 202, and that is to autonomouslydetermine the optimal settings based upon actual transmitter andreceiver conditions in the handset itself. Cellular handsettransmitters, for example, commonly utilize power amplifiers which canbe adjusted to a range of output power levels upon direction from thebase station to which they are communicating. The handset controller canbe aware of the transmit power setting at any instant, and it can alsobe aware of the received signal strength being received from the basestation at any instant as well.

With the knowledge of these transmit and receive levels the controllercan determine if the antenna match should be altered to improve thematch in the transmit or receive band. In the case where both the uplinkand downlink paths have margin (the transmitter is at a lower powerlevel and the receiver sees high signal power) the tunable match can beadjusted to a position that optimizes transmitter efficiency (to reducecurrent drain, and thereby improve battery life) or to a position thatoptimizes transmitter linearity (to reduce in band interference toimprove overall system capacity).

Another potential use of the tunable matching network 202 is tointentionally de-tune, or degrade the performance of the match in thereceive band, while maintaining a good match (for either transmit power,efficiency or linearity) in the transmit band of the handset. A reasonfor doing so would be to make the receiver less sensitive andcorrespondingly less susceptible to local interfering signals. Asbefore, by detecting a strong desired received signal the handsetcontroller can autonomously set the tuner to a state that would increasethe loss in the receiver path inside the handset while maintaining agood match to the transmitter.

Another embodiment is to consider the tunable matching network 202 as atunable filter network. Correspondingly, intentionally detuning thenetwork in the receive band is equivalent to tuning the passband of afilter to include only the transmit band but to partially reject thereceive band.

It is also possible that a network operator would prefer that whenhandsets are in a situation with good link margin (both uplink anddownlink) they preferentially tune the antenna match to a position thatwould improve either current drain or linearity based upon the actualtime of day. During particular times of the workday (during rush hoursfor example) the network operator may prefer to optimize handsetlinearity to optimize network capacity during those times of heavyphone-call traffic.

Such network preferential tuning can be loaded into the look-up table atthe time the handset is manufactured, but it can be useful for theoperator to be able to re-program, or provision this information overthe air. This would give the operator flexibility to enhance theoperation of communication devices 100 operating in the communicationsystem 1400 each time changes are made to the system, or conditions arediscovered in the system that impact the overall performance which couldbe improved by modifying how the handsets work when encountering thoseconditions. There are several ways this provisioning can be accomplishedin wireless networks. For example, profiles can be supplied in ShortMessage Services (SMS), WAP PUSH, Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS)message, direct data channel connection over an internet protocol, SIMTook Kit messages, an over the air standard specified by the Open MobileAlliance (OMA), or via proprietary methods such as used in iPhone orAndroid based phone.

Another implementation of a tuning application can be to incorporate itinto the 3GPP SIM Toolkit specification. The tuning application canreceive lookup table information from a corresponding tuning applicationin the communication system. This lookup table can contain any number ofparameters relating to how the handset should perform such as linearity,detuning, transmit weighted, receive weighted, battery life weighted,etc. The network tuning application can also furnish other specificinformation relating to when or where a particular performance profileshould be chosen, for example:

-   -   Network Id (PLMN in the 3GPP standard)    -   Cell Identifier (CELL Id in the 3GPP standard)    -   time of day    -   day of the week    -   manufacturer ID (part of the handset serial number e.g. 3GPP        IMEI)

The handset can, with the proper lookup table, apply all of theseparameters to a specific performance profile. The network tuningapplication can select specific profiles for handset manufacturers andmodel and target these handsets with specific performance profiles withthe goal of attaining more uniform performance in particularcommunication cell areas.

From the foregoing descriptions, it would be evident to an artisan withordinary skill in the art that the aforementioned embodiments can bemodified, reduced, or enhanced without departing from the scope andspirit of the claims described below. For example, methods 800 and 1400of FIGS. 8 and 14 can be adapted to be used for calibrating andprovisioning a tunable matching network of a wireline transceiver.Methods 800 and 1400 can be applied to innumerable combinations of usecases, bands, sub-sets of bands, and other performance parameters whichhave not been addressed in the present disclosure. These undisclosedcombinations are contemplated by the present disclosure.

Other suitable modifications can be applied to the present disclosure.Accordingly, the reader is directed to the claims for a fullerunderstanding of the breadth and scope of the present disclosure.

FIG. 16 depicts an exemplary diagrammatic representation of a machine inthe form of a computer system 1600 within which a set of instructions,when executed, may cause the machine to perform any one or more of themethodologies discussed above. In some embodiments, the machine operatesas a standalone device. In some embodiments, the machine may beconnected (e.g., using a network) to other machines. In a networkeddeployment, the machine may operate in the capacity of a server or aclient user machine in server-client user network environment, or as apeer machine in a peer-to-peer (or distributed) network environment.

The machine may comprise a server computer, a client user computer, apersonal computer (PC), a tablet PC, a laptop computer, a desktopcomputer, a control system, a network router, switch or bridge, or anymachine capable of executing a set of instructions (sequential orotherwise) that specify actions to be taken by that machine. It will beunderstood that a device of the present disclosure includes broadly anyelectronic device that provides voice, video or data communication.Further, while a single machine is illustrated, the term “machine” shallalso be taken to include any collection of machines that individually orjointly execute a set (or multiple sets) of instructions to perform anyone or more of the methodologies discussed herein.

The computer system 1600 may include a processor 1602 (e.g., a centralprocessing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU, or both), a mainmemory 1604 and a static memory 1606, which communicate with each othervia a bus 1608. The computer system 1600 may further include a videodisplay unit 1610 (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD), a flat panel, asolid state display, or a cathode ray tube (CRT)). The computer system1600 may include an input device 1612 (e.g., a keyboard), a cursorcontrol device 1614 (e.g., a mouse), a disk drive unit 1616, a signalgeneration device 1618 (e.g., a speaker or remote control) and a networkinterface device 1620.

The disk drive unit 1616 may include a machine-readable medium 1622 onwhich is stored one or more sets of instructions (e.g., software 1624)embodying any one or more of the methodologies or functions describedherein, including those methods illustrated above. The instructions 1624may also reside, completely or at least partially, within the mainmemory 1604, the static memory 1606, and/or within the processor 1602during execution thereof by the computer system 1600. The main memory1604 and the processor 1602 also may constitute machine-readable media.

Dedicated hardware implementations including, but not limited to,application specific integrated circuits, programmable logic arrays andother hardware devices can likewise be constructed to implement themethods described herein. Applications that may include the apparatusand systems of various embodiments broadly include a variety ofelectronic and computer systems. Some embodiments implement functions intwo or more specific interconnected hardware modules or devices withrelated control and data signals communicated between and through themodules, or as portions of an application-specific integrated circuit.Thus, the example system is applicable to software, firmware, andhardware implementations.

In accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure, themethods described herein are intended for operation as software programsrunning on a computer processor. Furthermore, software implementationscan include, but not limited to, distributed processing orcomponent/object distributed processing, parallel processing, or virtualmachine processing can also be constructed to implement the methodsdescribed herein.

The present disclosure contemplates a machine readable medium containinginstructions 1624, or that which receives and executes instructions 1624from a propagated signal so that a device connected to a networkenvironment 1626 can send or receive voice, video or data, and tocommunicate over the network 1626 using the instructions 1624. Theinstructions 1624 may further be transmitted or received over a network1626 via the network interface device 1620.

While the machine-readable medium 1622 is shown in an example embodimentto be a single medium, the term “machine-readable medium” should betaken to include a single medium or multiple media (e.g., a centralizedor distributed database, and/or associated caches and servers) thatstore the one or more sets of instructions. The term “machine-readablemedium” shall also be taken to include any medium that is capable ofstoring, encoding or carrying a set of instructions for execution by themachine and that cause the machine to perform any one or more of themethodologies of the present disclosure.

The term “machine-readable medium” shall accordingly be taken toinclude, but not be limited to: solid-state memories such as a memorycard or other package that houses one or more read-only (non-volatile)memories, random access memories, or other re-writable (volatile)memories; magneto-optical or optical medium such as a disk or tape;and/or a digital file attachment to e-mail or other self-containedinformation archive or set of archives is considered a distributionmedium equivalent to a tangible storage medium. Accordingly, thedisclosure is considered to include any one or more of amachine-readable medium or a distribution medium, as listed herein andincluding art-recognized equivalents and successor media, in which thesoftware implementations herein are stored.

Although the present specification describes components and functionsimplemented in the embodiments with reference to particular standardsand protocols, the disclosure is not limited to such standards andprotocols. Each of the standards for Internet and other packet switchednetwork transmission (e.g., TCP/IP, UDP/IP, HTML, HTTP) representexamples of the state of the art. Such standards are periodicallysuperseded by faster or more efficient equivalents having essentiallythe same functions. Accordingly, replacement standards and protocolshaving the same functions are considered equivalents.

The illustrations of embodiments described herein are intended toprovide a general understanding of the structure of various embodiments,and they are not intended to serve as a complete description of all theelements and features of apparatus and systems that might make use ofthe structures described herein. Many other embodiments will be apparentto those of skill in the art upon reviewing the above description. Otherembodiments may be utilized and derived therefrom, such that structuraland logical substitutions and changes may be made without departing fromthe scope of this disclosure. Figures are also merely representationaland may not be drawn to scale. Certain proportions thereof may beexaggerated, while others may be minimized. Accordingly, thespecification and drawings are to be regarded in an illustrative ratherthan a restrictive sense.

Such embodiments of the inventive subject matter may be referred toherein, individually and/or collectively, by the term “invention” merelyfor convenience and without intending to voluntarily limit the scope ofthis application to any single invention or inventive concept if morethan one is in fact disclosed. Thus, although specific embodiments havebeen illustrated and described herein, it should be appreciated that anyarrangement calculated to achieve the same purpose may be substitutedfor the specific embodiments shown. This disclosure is intended to coverany and all adaptations or variations of various embodiments.Combinations of the above embodiments, and other embodiments notspecifically described herein, will be apparent to those of skill in theart upon reviewing the above description.

The Abstract of the Disclosure is provided to comply with 37 C.F.R.§1.72(b), requiring an abstract that will allow the reader to quicklyascertain the nature of the technical disclosure. It is submitted withthe understanding that it will not be used to interpret or limit thescope or meaning of the claims. In addition, in the foregoing DetailedDescription, it can be seen that various features are grouped togetherin a single embodiment for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure.This method of disclosure is not to be interpreted as reflecting anintention that the claimed embodiments require more features than areexpressly recited in each claim. Rather, as the following claimsreflect, inventive subject matter lies in less than all features of asingle disclosed embodiment. Thus the following claims are herebyincorporated into the Detailed Description, with each claim standing onits own as a separately claimed subject matter.

What is claimed is:
 1. A wireless communication device comprising: amatching network including a variable reactance element; and acontroller coupled with the matching network for tuning of the matchingnetwork, wherein the controller performs operations comprising:establishing a wireless communication link with a communication elementthat is remote from the wireless communication device; selecting aprofile from among a plurality of profiles based on an identification ofthe communication element that corresponds to the selected profile,wherein each profile of the plurality of profiles includes an RFperformance parameter, wherein the plurality of profiles does notinclude settings for the variable reactance element of the matchingnetwork; determining a tuning state for the matching network accordingto the RF performance parameter; and adjusting the variable reactanceelement according to the tuning state to perform impedance matching. 2.The wireless communication device of claim 1, further comprising atransmitter and a receiver, wherein the RF performance parametercomprises a first RF performance parameter associated with thetransmitter and a second RF performance parameter associated with thereceiver.
 3. The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein thedetermining of the tuning state for the matching network is based on acompromise between transmitter performance and receiver performance. 4.The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein the determining ofthe tuning state for the matching network is based in part on a specificabsorption rate.
 5. The wireless communication device of claim 4,wherein the determining of the tuning state for the matching network isbased in part on a determination of a physical use configuration of thewireless communication device.
 6. The wireless communication device ofclaim 1, wherein the RF performance parameter comprises one of radiatedtransmit power, receive sensitivity, transmit linearity, power amplifierefficiency, or a combination thereof.
 7. The wireless communicationdevice of claim 1, wherein the RF performance parameter comprisestransmit linearity or power amplifier efficiency.
 8. The wirelesscommunication device of claim 1, wherein the RF performance parametercomprises power amplifier efficiency.
 9. The wireless communicationdevice of claim 1, wherein the RF performance parameter is a group of RFperformance parameters, and wherein at least one of the plurality ofprofiles includes a weighting factor to be applied to the group of RFperformance parameters.
 10. The wireless communication device of claim1, wherein the determining of the tuning state for the matching networkcomprises measuring an operational parameter during transmitting. 11.The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein the controllerreceives a provisioning instruction from a communication system thatmanages a communication network to which the communication elementbelongs.
 12. The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein thecommunication element is part of a cellular base station, and whereinthe identification of the communication element is based on a CellIdentifier received from the communication element.
 13. A method,comprising: establishing, by a wireless communication device, a wirelesscommunication link with a communication element that is remote from thewireless communication device; receiving, by the wireless communicationdevice from the communication element, network condition informationwithout receiving settings for a variable reactance element of amatching network of the wireless communication device; determining, bythe wireless communication device, a desired operational metricaccording to the network condition information; measuring, by thewireless communication device, an operational metric for communicationsof the wireless communication device; determining, by the wirelesscommunication device, a tuning state for the matching network accordingto a comparison of the operational metric and the desired operationalmetric; and adjusting, by the wireless communication device, thevariable reactance element according to the tuning state to performimpedance matching.
 14. The method of claim 13, further comprisingreceiving a provisioning instruction from a communication system towhich the communication element belongs.
 15. The method of claim 13,wherein the communication element is a cellular base station or awireless local area network access point.
 16. The method of claim 13,wherein the desired operational metric includes one of radiated transmitpower, receive sensitivity, transmit linearity, power amplifierefficiency, or a combination thereof.
 17. The method of claim 13,wherein the determining of the desired operational metric comprisesdetermining a plurality of desired operational metrics, and furthercomprising receiving, by the wireless communication device from thecommunication element, weighting factors to be applied to at least someof the plurality of desired operational metrics for determining thetuning state.
 18. A non-transitory computer-readable storage device,comprising computer instructions which, responsive to being executed bya processor of a wireless communication device, cause the processer toperform operations comprising: receiving, from a communication elementover a wireless communication link, network condition informationwithout receiving settings for a variable reactance element of amatching network of the wireless communication device; determining adesired operational metric according to the network conditioninformation; measuring an operational metric for communications of thewireless communication device; determining a tuning state for thematching network according to a comparison of the operational metric andthe desired operational metric; and adjusting the variable reactanceelement according to the tuning state to perform impedance matching. 19.The non-transitory computer-readable storage device of claim 18, whereinthe desired operational metric comprises first and second desiredoperational metrics, and wherein the determining of the tuning statecomprises providing a compromise between the first and second desiredoperational metrics.
 20. The non-transitory computer-readable storagedevice of claim 18, wherein the first desired operational metric isassociated with transmitter performance, and wherein the second desiredoperational metric is associated with receiver performance.